Widely recognized as the founder of the World Wide Web, which opened the Internet to the world, Tim Berners-Lee is a uniquely appropriate choice as the first recipient of the Paul Evan Peters Award. He epitomizes the high standards set for this award with his vision, technical expertise, and humanitarian outlook. In the course of more than a decade he developed a vision and a design for the Web and brought it to life. He wrote the first version of the protocol for transmitting information on the Web (Hypertext Transfer Protocol, or HTTP) and the first version of Hypertext Markup Language, HTML), devised the method for addressing documents on the Web (later known as Universal Resource Locators, or URLs), and developed the first Web server and the first Web browser. His creation has changed the way people communicate and work together worldwide. In his current work with the W3C he continues to encourage the development of open specifications to enhance the functionality of the Web as a mode of free expression and global communication.

Note: This information was originally posted at the time the winner was named and is not being updated.